Title: Some dietary carotenoids and blood-carotenoid levels in flamingos
Abstract: 1. Flamingos denied carotenoid in the diet store in the blood decreasing concentrations of residual canthaxanthin as the predominant or commonly the only remaining cartenoid. 2. Low blood levels of canthaxanthin were not elevated nor supplemented with other recognizable carotenoids when the feed received only added lutein, zeaxanthin or lycopene. 3. When fed ample salmon flesh, containing rich supplies of astxanthin as the sole carotenoid, the birds stored in their blood, after some 6 weeks, chiefly residual canthaxanthin, minor amounts of lutein (incidental to the basic diet of dog-chow), and traces of astaxanthin; after 10 weeks, however, the presence of astaxanthin was hardly detectable, while the incidental lutein was observed in minor quantity and the level of residual canthaxanthin had decreased. 4. Supplementation of the basic diet with canthaxanthin alone gradually effected an increment of that pigment in the blood. Unlike the earlier observed effect of dietary β-carotene upon the blood, however, the increase in canthaxanthin level resulting from feeding of this pigment seemed to be less rapid, and involved no production of echinenone.
Publication Year: 1970
Publication Date: 1970-06-01
Language: en
Type: article
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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Cited By Count: 45
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